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HISTORY THE OLD KENTUCKY HAMS KCARC Editor’s Note from the 'Hamcall' February 2016: A month before the 2016 annual winter meeting, I asked Hank W4HTB, the current president, about the history of The Old Kentucky Hams organization. He had a folder containing this article and two drafts of it written in 1982 along with a shorter version edited by Tyla Groce N4PWT in 1991 and given to Warren Harris W4PKX to be read at the annual meeting. Another even shorter version appeared in the ‘Hamcall’ in February 1989. Below is what appears to be the final version by Bob Jolly with input from Hansford Scott found in a letter sent to Bob in May 1982 containing information about the first meetings of the group. Yet another copy of the history was given to me in June 2023 that is slightly different revised by Tylar Groce, N4PWT, and is named History of the Old Kentucky Hams via Warren Harris, W4PKX, revised by N4PWT, June 1991, and can be read by clicking this link. This webpage for The Old Kentucky Hams has been placed on the KCARC website to help preserve the history of this organization. HISTORY OF THE OLD KENTUCKY HAMS by Bob Jolly K4ORC Founded in 1946 Thales, a Greek philosopher, started talking and writing about little particles of matter called the “electron” during the period of 600 B.C. Many years later, a French physicist, Charles A. Coulomb, used all the information he could find on the electron, experimented with them, and established an electrical charge which these little electrons exhibited. Andre Marie Ampere, Conte Allessandro Volta, and Dr. George Simon Ohm also made contributions to the electronic phenomena. Through the efforts of all of these inspired men, and others, the foundation for electronics was laid. Communications up to this time had been by word of mouth, foot, horseback, and ships. A very slow and cumbersome method. Marchese Guglielmo Marconi saw the possibility of improving communications by communicating over wires by the use of telegraphy. Although telegraphy was a tremendous improvement in communications, the wires were difficult and sometimes impossible to string in some areas which prompted the idea of transmitting information through the air without the use of wires. Thomas Edison invented the electric light bulb and later the electronic tube was developed to improve the “state of the art” of electronics. However, many of the people preferred to get started with simple equipment, and especially the kids, and one of the most simple receivers was called the ‘crystal detector”. It consisted of a coil of wire, a couple of condensers usually made from tinfoil, a crystal (galena), a cats whisker for the galena, and a pair of headphones. Kids started getting spankings for coming home from school covered with coal dust after looking through coal piles looking for pieces of galena. Cats also took on a different appearance when they started losing their cat whiskers to the receiver sets, hi, and strands of wire started disappearing from fences. At this time, people who smoked cigarettes were even encouraged to smoke more. The tin foil from the empty packs was needed to make condensers. So many people were tinkering with the new phenomena of electronics that it became necessary to establish licenses in order for the government to have some control over it. But this didn’t deter those who genuinely interested and a young man by the name of Joe Anderson became licensed as W9EI who later became Neal McGown’s “Elmer”. Neal became W9FZL. Neal McGown later became “Elmer” for another Bowling Green man, Johnny Gerard, who lived in Frankfort, Kentucky, and also Hansford Scott who lived in Auburn, Kentucky, during the early ‘30s. After they became licensed they talked on the air almost daily and became known as the “Corny Crackers”, and of course, others joined the small net as time passed by. Johnny Gerard was W4TFK and Scotty was W4NGZ. World War II came along and when the Japanese struck Pearl Harbor, the U.S. was caught with its pants down. The fleet was virtually destroyed and there weren’t nearly enough men in the military to handle the task at hand. Communications was one of the most essential things needed. Hams rose to the call and needed very little training to become functional immediately. An offensive was gradually mounted and victory in Europe came May 8, 1945, and victory in Japan occurred August 15th of the same year. With World War II over, the veteran hams were anxious to get home and get their rigs back on the air and find out how each other fared during the war. The tales were often too lengthy to tell on the air so it was decided to have a meeting at Mammoth Cave for a real “eyeball” and “rag-chew”. Neal McGown, Johnny Gerard, Hansford Scott, and Alex Carter got together and organized the first meeting, and what is now “The Old Kentucky Hams” was born. About 60 to 70 attended the first meeting. They arrived on Saturday before the first Sunday in June of 1946. They had dinner in the dining room of the old hotel (now razed) and then retired to the screened-in porch of the old hotel to continue their rag-chewing, eyeballing with rocking chair copy into the wee hours of the morning and of course "spring water” was consumed to keep throats wet and spirits high. The festivities of Saturday night were followed by a picnic on Sunday in the picnic area behind where the new hotel is presently located. Scotty furnished a truck which was filled with cold drinks and beer in ice at Alex’s in Bowling Green and brought up to Mammoth Cave on Sunday. Admittance to the area was $1.50 per adult, kids free. Tabs on the tickets were used for the drinks and the ticket was used for a drawing at 3:30 p.m. Adolph Abraham and another ham from Lexington, Kentucky, rounded up the prizes to be given away at the drawing. Johnny Gerard did an excellent job of serving as MC. The day was spent rag chewing and swapping, selling, and trading of radio parts and equipment which was followed at 3:30 by the drawing of brand new radio goodies. This weekend at mammoth Cave was simply called a “Ham Reunion” for many years. The popularity of the reunion grew and grew … even though the date was kicked around for several years to keep from clashing with other hamfests. At the time of this writing, 1st Sunday in June, 1982, 35 years after the original meeting, the organization is still going strong. Harry Carroll, W4AEE, designed and printed impressive “The Old Kentucky Ham” certificates as proof of membership. At first, one had to be a licensed ham for twenty years to qualify for one of the certificates, but times change and now the certificates can be had by attending a reunion, pay a nominal fee of $1.00 and have a valid ham license. The park management doesn’t allow the swapfest anymore so the picnic on Sunday was ceased. So what is known as the “The Old Kentucky Ham” reunion on the 1st Sunday in June is now actually a get together in the new motel followed by a banquet on the Saturday night before the 1st Sunday in June. However, something new has been added. A winter meeting and banquet is held the last weekend in January of each year. The impressive “The Old Kentucky Ham” certificates are now valued in the memory of the “infamous four”, Neal McGown (W9FZL, W4KBY, K4EI), Johnny Gerard (W4TFK), Hansford “Scotty” Scott, (W4NGZ), and Alex Carter (W4CMP) who had come to Bowling Green from Knob Lick, Kentucky. It was through the efforts of this infamous four and many others through the years that helped develop Ham Radio to the state of the art that it is today so the present generation and the generations to come can enjoy the fruits of their labors. 73’s.
Information about OKH Group from Mike Carroll, W4AEE In March, OKH President, W4HTB, received the following message from W4AEE: Greetings, Henry (or maybe you go by Hank) Quite by accident sometime last year, I wandered into the Old Kentucky Hams page of the KCARC website. It was a pleasant surprise and stirred many memories! In the 1960s as a new ham (WN4POG, 1963, age 12), I attended many of the Mammoth Cave gatherings with my grandparents, Harry (W4AEE) and Maude Carroll. They were close friends with Neal (W9FZL/W4KBY/K4EI) and Margarette McGown, Scotty (W4NGZ) and Ruby Scott, Johnny (W4TFK) and Pearl Gerard, Earl Jago (W4YYI), and Doc (W4NDY) and Blanch Strode. I always enjoyed visiting with those folks and hearing all the yarns they'd spin, as well as talking with them mornings on-the-air via the "Corn Crackers' Net" (informal) on 3932 kHz. SSB. I've attached hereto a write-up of my remembrances of the hamfest at the Cave, and of the Old Kentucky Hams group, of which I was a charter member. In fact, I'm in the orange, background montage on the certificates, the young fella with others in the second photo from the left, in the bottom row. That photo was made one Saturday when K4EI, W4NGZ, W4TFK and their XYLs stopped by for a visit at my grandparent's home in Goodlettsville, TN. I still have some of the original, blank OKH certificates and the negatives used in making them. Harry was the designer and printer of those. If the group would like to have what remain, I can send them to you.
73 and All My Best to the OKH Group Below is an article Mike sent about the OKH group or click here for pdf file.
More About the Old Kentucky Hams Club of the 1960’s Although he lived in Madison, Tennessee, my grandfather, Harry Carroll, W4AEE became fast friends with several Ham Radio operators in KY during one of the Ohio River valley floods of the late 1930's when they all assisted the U.S. Corps of Engineers by passing health and welfare traffic on 75-meter phone. Harry continued to have QSO's with those fellas until WWII shut everyone down for the duration. After the war, they resumed regular QSO’s on various 75m. frequencies. After meeting informally at various QTH’s and other locations in south central Kentucky, the original group (then numbering only about 12) started an annual get together each June at Mammoth Cave. The OM’s, and some of their XYL’s (my grandmother, included), would begin the weekend by meeting Saturday afternoon at the old, white, wood-frame Mammoth Cave Hotel. That evening, they would gather after supper and spend several hours sitting in the rocking chairs and rag chewing on the long, front porch. (I remember a tame raccoon that would come out from under the porch and gently take from hands whatever morsels of food he could get.) On Sunday morning after a big, Kentucky ham breakfast, the guys would go over to the parking area behind the hotel (and some years to the parking area near the old cabins on the other side of the present cave visitors center) where a rather small tail-gating hamfest would commence. Usually other area Hams who had not stayed over the night before would come, too. Then late on Sunday afternoon, the group would disperse to journey back home. By 1961, Harry and his friends had transitioned from AM to SSB and started QSO's early mornings on 3932 kHz. where they pitched their radio tents for 15+ years. They called themselves "The Kentucky Corn Crackers Net." or just “Corn Crackers.” Whoever showed up first was official net control for that very informal gathering of OMs throughout Kentucky, S. Indiana and S. Ohio, W. Virginia, and N. Middle-Tennessee. Later on, about the time I was first licensed in 1963, Harry and his 3932 buddies (by then they had become my friends, too) decided to form a rag-chewing radio club, calling themselves the "Old Kentucky Hams." In his professional life, Harry was a printing engraver, lithographer, and offset plate maker. So, the group naturally turned to him to design and print the club membership certificates, a copy of which currently appears on the The Old Kentucky Hams webpage, which I recently discovered. The finished certificates were sent to the club president who was, at the time, Johnny Gerard, W4TFK, in Frankfort. Johnny filled in the blanks and signed the certificates proudly distributing one to each member. I and my granddad were “charter members.” I still have his and my certificates at my QTH in Franklin, TN. Early OKH group members included:
[As an aside, I will mention that John Gerard, W4TFK, one of the OKH group’s founders, was the young man who crawled into Sand Cave to string a phone line down to (fatally) trapped, Floyd Collins. Floyd’s family, the doctors, hopeful rescuers and a number of newspaper reporters talked with him via that phoneline until the poor guy died from hypothermia and dehydration on Feb. 13, 1925. Floyd and his predicament were an international media event. Also noteworthy are two Hams who were responsible for getting the news reports quickly from the cave to the outside world. One set up a portable, CW station at the scene while the other located his rig at the Western Union telegraph office at Cave City. These men were Homer Ogden, 9BRK, and Basil Rauth, 9CHG, both of whom had come down from Jeffersonville, Indiana to help out. –W4AEE]
The Old Kentucky Hams Amateur
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